• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.39
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• pp.407-432
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• 2015

This study focuses on the flow of story and content or related context when using movies as learning materials in a class. A great advantage of using movies is that they have a consistent story and detailed content development. Most teachers, however, tend to concentrate on practical expressions totally unrelated to the story or context of the movie they are using. This way might be efficient in the short run but it is certain that the expressions are unlikely to be retained in long-term memory. This study examines how a story-centered class influences learning of practical expressions and how efficient this approach to learning is. Learning and teaching with focus only on the expressions in a movie shades the meaning of the use of the movie a little. In this study the movie, Cars 2, was used in a course of general education with 150 students enrolled. Various group activities were suggested to immerse students into the story and contents of Cars 2. It was found that a story-centered class is helpful for students to acquire practical expressions and that students' satisfaction level with the class was high.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.42
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• pp.261-283
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• 2016

The aim of this study is to consider the possibility of learning polite expressions of English using the mobile application Naver Band. To improve communicative competence, students need to develop sociolinguistic competence as well as grammatical and discourse competence. To be accordant to social context, the roles of the participants, and the purpose of the interaction, students have to make an appropriate utterance. When a hearer has a higher social status and is older than a speaker, or have low levels of familiarity, Korean native speaker tends to use polite expressions. Students need to learn polite expressions of English because English has a different honorific system from Korean. To realize the characteristics and function of polite language is one thing, but to learn it in a real classroom is another. This study attempts to apply the use of a mobile application, which is considered a user-friendly tool for students, into learning polite language using the UK historical drama, Downton Abbey. Two tests were administered to an experimental group that used the mobile application and a control group that used group work. The results of the two tests show that the use of the mobile application has a positive effect on learning polite expressions and is effective as an after-school activity. In an open-ended questionnaire, students tend to identify polite expressions as superior or high-level language forms and separate these forms from practical expressions. It should be noted as well that teachers need to consider instructing in modern English when using a historical drama in the teaching and learning of polite expressions.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.643-651
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• 2016

This study considers the value of English-language films as material for learning a foreign tongue using posh discourse. In daily life, when we decline an invitation or convey unpleasant information to a listener, we use polite expressions; we are careful with our words. English language learners need to learn polite expressions in order to interact peacefully with others; doing so can minimize conflict, which is inherent in social relationships. This study uses the British drama Downton Abbey, which is about aristocracy. This study analyzes the posh discourse used in Downton Abbey and insists that students need to learn it explicitly. It is important to learn the polite expressions of this authentic drama in a real classroom. This study suggests that students work in groups to create a short video, and to try to understand the characters' personalities. Movies, TV dramas, and sitcoms provide great content that shows the various functions of the language that students want to learn. As a source of learning material, film can help improve students' motivation and interest in learning a foreign language.